February 2015 - Cover Story: Sean Patrick Flanery
By Teresa Ewers
When Sean Patrick Flanery made a stop back to the “Querque”, as he likes to call it, last month, to say that interviewing the star of Boondock Saints and Dexter wasn’t a little intimidating would be an understatement. Not because the man has over 90 projects on his resume, but because the man is a live wire. You never know what he’ll say or do. Not surprising, as this is the same man that, while attending the University of St. Thomas in Houston, saw a beautiful girl leaving a building on campus every Monday decided to drop an English class and sign up for "whatever the hell they were teaching in that building". The building was the University's theater department, and the class was acting.
Well, I can truly say that Flanery is one of the most down to earth people you could meet and has a mouth like a sailor, another one of his best traits - speaking the truth, no matter it may be addressed. It’s also safe to say that his impulsive nature has worked for him. His love for theater led to some amazing roles and the opportunity to work with acting greats like Christopher Walken in the movie Suicide Kings, an experience that Flanery cherishes. “I dig working Christopher Walken,” says Flanery. “He’s a solid individual. I love work with big name like Walkin. I’ve made a career out of doing independent films, so I truly enjoy experiences like that.” One of Flanery’s most memorable roles, Connor MacManus in the Boondock Saints franchise, is one he has a soft spot for and he understands why it resonates with fans. “Our characters do what everybody secretly wants somebody to do in society. There’s people out there that just deserve it.”
Flanery has played in several different genres, but when it comes to choosing a favorite, he says it comes down to something else. “It about good, good material. I love to do good writing. I love to do something that I don’t have to convince myself is real. If the writing is good enough and believe it wholeheartedly, your body takes over and surprises you with what it does. That’s my favorite stuff to do.”
Flanery took part in this year’s Albuquerque Comic Con and shared how he felt about his fan base and events like the Con that give him an insight of how his fan feel about his work. “Doing film you don’t get that immediate response like you do in theater. But when you go to an event like this and hear what people think about the films and the work that you’ve done, so it’s mutually beneficial. It’s nourishment for the Thespian soul.”
When Flanery is not working the mind with scripts, he is working the body as a high ranking martial artist, earning his black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in 2008 from the Renzo Gracie lineage. He owns his own BJJ academy called Hollywood Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in West Hollywood, Ca. where he trains regularly depending on his film schedule. Flanery also spends time with his special pooch, Donut, who has become a real fixture in his life. “She’s 14 years old,” says Flanery. “I got her when she was 5 months old and she is one of the best creatures I’ve ever met.”
Flanery currently wrapped on his latest film, Kepler’s Dream, filmed here in Albuquerque and Santa Fe and has been greenlighted for Boondock Saints III. He also has four others new films, The Last Word, Broken Horses, Gibby and The Kiss.
Sean Patrick Flanery has truly made a name for himself. With over 90 roles under his acting belt, including playing the role of Connor MacManus in The Boondock Saints and The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day, Bobby Dagen in Saw 3D and Jacob Elway on Dexter, Flanery enjoys what he does and shows no signs of stopping. When it comes to the legacy he wants to leave behind, Flanery has a goal that most people strive for. “I think everyone would like their legacy to be that they left this place a little better than they found it,” shares Flanery. “I’m in the most expendable industry known to man, it’s not like you change the world with films, but hopefully something I’ve done has made somebody think and maybe make a positive choice in their life.”